Interlocking block and order signal.



PATENTBD DEC. 11, 1906. J. G. MOORE.

INTERLOGKING BLOCK AND ORDER SIGNAL.

APPLIOATION'I'ILBD .JULY 25. "1906,. v

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No. 838,26 2.' I .PATENTED DEC. 11, 1906.

J. G. MOORE.

INTERLOGKING BLOCK AND ORDER SIGNAL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 26. 1906.

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TEE STATES PATENT EEroE. I

INTERLOCKING BLOCK AND ORDER SIGNAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 11, 1906.

Application filed July 25, 1906. Serial No. 327,668.

To a, whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OSEPH G. MOORE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Interlocking Block andOrder Signals, of which the following is a full, clear, and eXactdescription.

The object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism forsetting train-order signals and block-signals to obtain certainadvantages, which will appear more fully below.

The operation and purpose of block-signals are well known, the purposeof block-signals being to prevent the train from moving onto an occupiedblock, and when this signal is set the train must come to a stop and notproceed until the signal is changed.

In the operation of trains it is frequently necessary for the agent togive the engineers or conductor of the train an order for the governmentof the immediate future conduct of the train. There are two classes oftrainorders, one of which simply requires the train to slow down, sothat the order may be handed to the conductor as he passes the station,and the presence of this type of trainorder at the station is ordinarilyindicated to the engineer by having a green signal, either a flag orlantern, displayed in any suitable place, ordinarily on the block-signalmast. The other type of trainorder re quires the train to come to a fullstop, so that the order may be read to the trainmen by the agent and thesignatures of the trainmen obtained to the order, and the fact that suchan order is to be delivered is usually indicated by displaying a redsignal, either flag or lantern. Such orders are not ordinarily givenunless the conditions are such that the blocksignal is set so as to warnthe train not to proceed onto the next block.

It is the purpose of the present invention to provide an easy means bywhich the station agent may, without leaving his telegraph instrument,set the train-order signals, as well as the block-signal. Now it isdesirable to provide some means when the red train-order signal, whichrequires the train to come to a full stop, is set that this particularclass of train-order should be delivered without fail, as it is usuallyof considerable importance. As a matter of fact, the engineers sometimesoverlook the trainorder signals if they note that the blocksignal isdown, indicating that the block is clear ahead of them, as they thenfeel that they can proceed without danger. Furthermore, it frequentlyhappens that when the station agent has set a red train-order signal andalso has the block-signal set word comes over the wire that the block isclear, and the agent, from sheer force of habit, involuntarily reachesfor the lever which withdraws the signal, thus indicating to theengineers that the block is clear, and it frequently happens that theengineers then overlook the order-signal and proceed onto the neXtblockwithout stopping for the orders, whereas if the block-signal hadremained set they would have come to a full stop and the agent wouldhave been enabled to deliver the orders.

It is my purpose to provide means whereby the agent may, without leavinghis office, set both the block and the train-order signals and by whichwhen the block-signal and the train-order signal requiring the train tocome. to a full stop are each set the block-signal is.

but showing the parts in the position in which the block-signal and thered trainorder signal are set. Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view ofthe mechanism which operates the train-order target-plate.

In the various figures it will be seen that I have secured to the samesemaphorema st A a block-signal semaphore B of the ordinary type and twotrain-order signals, a green 0 Figs. l, 5,. and 6 are views similar toFigs. 1, 2, and 3,.

and a red C together with a target-plate C having red and green lensestherein. For the purpose of operating the block-signal semaphore Iprovide a series of connectingrods B B B and a hand-lever B, suitablymounted. The two train-order signals are each operated by a singlehand-lever C, operating through two separate sets of connecting-rods.

Each of the train-order signal-flags O O is hung on an arm, which armsare pivotally mounted at their inner end upon a short shaft A,projecting from the semaphore-mast, upon which shaft is also pivotallymounted the target-plate C having the red and green lenses correspondingto the red and green flags, which target-plate is operated, togetherwith the flags, after a manner to be pointed out below. One of theflagsfor example, the green flag Chas pivotally attached near the innerend of its arm a connectingrod 0, which through a bell-crank C at thelower portion of the mast receives motion'from asecond connecting-rod Chaving a slotted end. The hand-lever C for operating the train-ordersignals has projecting therefrom a pin C passing through the slot on thesecond connecting-rod C The weight of the flag C and its arm areordinarily suflicient to throw the slotted connecting-rod C back towardthe operating-lever to such position that the forward end of the slot isadjacent to the pin C projecting from the hand-lever, when thehand-lever is in its intermediate position, as shown in Fig. 1. Thus theforward movement of the handlever' C will immediately transmit motionthrough the connecting-rods C and C and bell-crank C to the greensignal-fiag C and cause it to be thrown upward, though it is plain thata movement of the hand-lever C from the intermediate position in theopposite or rearward direction would be without effect upon the greensignal-flag, as the pin C projecting from the hand-lever, would merelyride along the slot at the end of the connecting-rod C The red flag Chas near the inner end of its arm a slotted projection C and adjacentthereto is a short link 0, to which is pinned a connecting-rod 0 whichthrough the medium of a second bell-crank C at the lower end of thesemaphore-mast receives motion from still another connecting-rod 0 whichhas a slotted end and is operated by the same hand-lever C whichoperates the green flag O. The pin connecting the before-mentioned shortlink C and its connecting-rod 0 passes through the slotted projection Cnear the inner end of the flag-arm. This arrangement allows the link Cto move up ward a short distance before the flag itself is caused tomove, this bein for the purpose of obtaining the correct rdlativeposition of the target-plate, as will appear below.

The slotted connecting-rod C for operating the red flag is itselfoperated by the same pin projecting from the hand-lever C, whichoperates the connecting-rod of the green flag and will by arrangement ofthe bell-crank, as shown, be drawn forward by the weight of the flag, sothat the rear end of the slot is near the pin of the hand-lever when thelatter is in its intermediate position. Thus a rearward movement of thehand-lever will cause the elevation of'the red flag, while the forwardmovement of the lever will not affect the latter, since in such amovement the projecting pin will merely ride along the slot.

From the above it will be plain that the movement of the hand-lever inone direction will throw up the green signal without interfering withthe red, and a movement from the intermediate position in the oppositedirection will similarly set the red flag without interfering with thegreen, allowing the latter to remain at rest.

For the purpose of causing the targetplate carrying the lenses to move aproper distance to show the lens corresponding with the flag I providethe target-plate with a projecting pin 0, which lies in the path ofmovement of the green-flag arm and the short link which operates the redflag, each of which has therein a small hooked portion to catch the pinand carry it upward. (See Fig. 7.) Obviously in order to carry thetarget-plate farther when it is thrown by one flag than by the other itwill be necessary to have one of these hooks somewhat in advance of theother, and it is in order to secure the proper relative spacing of thesemovements that I have provided the slot in the arm at the end of the redflag, which allows the short link C to move and start the targetplateupward a short distance before the red flag C itself is lifted. Thisdetail feature, however, is capable of the widest sort of variation, andwhile I have used the form here shown in some of my structures I do notuse it in all cases.

Fixed to the hand-lever C, which operates the order-signals, andprojecting rearwardly therefrom is a bar C which I have shown as mountedat its rear end upon the pivot of the hand-lever B, which controls theblock-signal semaphore. The exact place of mounting the rear end of thisbar is not material, however. The upper face of the bar has acam-surface O", on which rides one end of a lock-bar D, pivoted to thestand of the semaphore-lever. This lock-bar has a notch D on its underside adapted to fit over a short pin B projecting from thesemaphore-lever when the latter is in its forward position, at which theblock-signal is set indicating a closed track. The cam-bar C however,

movable with and controlled by the trainorder lever, is so shaped as tohold the lockbar D up and prevent the notch D from falling over the pinB on the semaphore-lever B even when the latter is in its forwardposition, unless at the same time the train-order lever C be thrown backin such manner as to set the red train-order signal C In this last eventthe cam-bar will allow the lock-bar to drop, so that the pin B on thesemaphorelever will be caught in the notch of the lockbar and it will beimpossible to throw the semaphore-lever B back until the red trainordersignal 0 is released. This automatic locking of the block-semaphore willtake 1 place whether it first be set and the red trainorder signal thenbe set or the red train-order signal first be set and theblock-semaphore then be set. It is not material in which order theaction takes place. The result will always be that once theblock-semaphore and the red train-order signal are both set it will beimpossible to release the block-semaphore until the red train-ordersignal is released. Thus no involuntary or. careless action on the partof the station-agent will open up the block and present the opportu nityfor the engineer to overlook the special orders which he must stop andreceive.

In the foregoing description I have referred to the order-signals bytheir conven tional colors; but of course it is understood that this ismerely for convenience, as special conditions might require the use ofdifferent colors. Further, the detail mechanism for operating thevarious movable parts has been selected from a single embodiment of myinvention; but there are many variations in detail which it is possibleto introduce not in any way affecting the general principle involved.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In combination ablock-signal and operating mechanism therefor, an order-signal andoperating mechanism therefor, and means controlled by the operatingmechanism of the order-signal adapted to lock said block-signal when thelatter is set.

2. In combination a block-signal and operl independent of the movementof the mechanism in setting the other order-signals.

4. In combination, a block-signal and operating mechanism therefor, anorder-signal and operating mechanism therefor, the order-signal and itsoperating mechanism being freely movable with regard to the blocksignal,the block-signal being freely movable with regard to the order-signalWhen the latter is not set, and locking means ada ted to lock theblock-signal in set position W ien the order-signal is set.

5. In combination a block-signal and mechanism for setting the same, atrain-order signal and mechanism for setting the same, and means wherebythe said first signal may be locked in set position only when the saidsecond signal is in set position.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in the presence oftwo witnesses.

JOSEPH G. MOORE.

YVitnesses:

J M. WoonwARn, E. B. Grronnrsr.

